This article is a case study of the campaign against the Coca-Cola Company in Plachimada, Kerala, India, which was a reaction against alleged environmental damages and water depletion caused by the company's production of soft drinks. It addresses the following questions: How was civil society used as a platform for this struggle and what was the outcome? Did this campaign affect the political participation of its members? The study is based on interviews and surveys of the villagers in Plachimada and connects to theories on social movements and political participation, as well as to the debate on Indian civil society. The findings presentedshow the importance of having a local, core group in charge of the campaign, while simultaneously making use of existing support groups at the regional, national, and international levels. It also reveals that after reaching its goal, the campaign has resulted in a general increase of political participation amongst its members.

In follow-up studies of activists, activism has been observed to have long-term positive effect on political participation. However, little attention has been paid to the conditions under which the theory applies. I examine how the personal consequences of participation in three different protest movements in Sweden depended upon movement success and procedural justice. The results support previous findings suggesting that activism has positive long-term effects on individual political participation. However, several of the activists interviewed did not follow this general pattern, especially those who suffered unfair and discriminatory treatment from the authorities. The results imply that the effect of activism on political participation is determined by the perceived procedural justice, whereas reaching the preferred policy outcome is of less importance. External political efficacy is indicated to be a potential mechanism explaining the relation between activism and long-term political participation. KeywordsBiographical Outcomes; Political Efficacy; Political Participation; Procedural Justice; Social Movements. resumenEn estudios de seguimiento a activistas se ha observado que el activismo tiene efectos positivos a largo plazo sobre la participación política. Sin embargo, se ha prestado poca atención a las condiciones en las que se aplica esta teoría. Este artículo examina cómo las consecuencias personales de la participación dependieron del éxito del movimiento y la justicia procesal en tres movimientos diferentes de protesta en Suecia. Los resultados apoyan hallazgos previos que sugieren que el activismo afecta de manera positiva a largo plazo sobre la participación política individual. Sin embargo, varios de los activistas entrevistados no siguieron este patrón general, especialmente entre quienes sufrieron un trato injusto y discriminatorio por parte de las autoridades. Los resultados sugieren que el efecto del activismo en la participación política viene determinado por la justicia procesal percibida. Al mismo tiempo, ganar la política que perseguía la protesta resulta de menor importancia. También se muestra que la eficacia política externa es un mecanismo potencial que explica la relación entre el activismo y la participación política a largo plazo.